Families who lost loved ones in Iraq reactedwith fury last night at Tony Blair's self-professed anguish over thecarnage triggered by the war.

Families who lost loved ones in Iraq reactedwith fury last night at Tony Blair's self-professed anguish over thecarnage triggered by the war.

In his memoirs, A Journey, the former PM says he regrets "with every fibre of my being" the lives lost since the invasion.

He adds that he failed to foresee the "bloody, destructive and chaotic.. nightmare", but stops short of an apology.

But Reg Keys, whose son Tom was killed by an Iraqi mob in 2003, blasted the sentiments as "crocodile tears".

Tony Blair has revealed the depth of his torment at sending British soldiers into Iraq - saying he regrets "with every fibre of my being" the lives lost in the war.

Yet the former Prime Minister's anguished words in his sensational memoirs published today stop short of an outright apology for the bloodshed triggered by the 2003 invasion.

He insists backing President George W Bush was the right course to take and says he would still support the US-led conflict - arguing that leaving Saddam Hussein in power would have left Britain in peril and the Iraqis at his mercy.

But in A Journey, which he calls "an extended love letter" to the nation, he nevertheless talks about the continuing burden of responsibility he feels to the dead and their families.

The ex-Labour leader, claiming any apology to the casualties and their families would be misplaced, says: "I am now beyond the mere expression of compassion. I feel words of condolence and sympathy to be entirely inadequate.

"They have died and I, the decision-maker in the circumstances that led to their deaths, still live. I can only hope to redeem something from the tragedy of death, in the actions of a life, my life, that still continues."

But he goes on: "I can't regret the decision to go to war. I can say never did I guess the bloody, destructive and chaotic nightmare that unfolded - and that too is part of the responsibility."

Mr Blair, now a Middle East peace envoy, is donating the s4.6million he received for writing the book - guaranteed to be a controversial best-seller after chalking up huge advance orders - to veterans through the Royal British Legion.

And he has hit out at the protesters who suggested at the Chilcot Inquiry into the war that he was not affected by the death toll.

He said: "Do they really suppose I don't care, don't feel, don't regret with every fibre of my being the loss of those who died?

"I feel desperately sorry for them, sorry for the lives cut short, sorry for the families whose bereavement is made worse by the controversy over loved ones... sorry for the unfair selection that the loss should be theirs."

He said he felt "sick" when asked if he had any regrets - saying the question was a trap to make him look "like some callous brute".

In other extracts released yesterday, Mr Blair also admits he thought about sacking "maddening" Gordon Brown but feared it would bring him down. And he fuels tensions in the Labour leadership battle by arguing that the party could have won the last election "had it not abandoned New Labour".

But the raft of opponents who have blasted his "memoirs of a war criminal" will hold several protests today as they focus mainly on his deeply personal reflections on Iraq and Afghanistan.

Relatives of the dead last night sounded their fury in person. Reg Keys, whose Military Policeman son Tom was killed by an Iraqi mob in June 2003, said: "These are just crocodile tears from Blair. To say he regrets the dead is offensive to those who lost loved ones. He has lost nobody and this comes in no way close to admitting his responsibility for what he did. The bottom line is that he lied - because when I told Tom to be careful, he replied, 'We have to go because there is a madman about to drop WMDs on us'. In a way I'm glad Tom died not knowing the truth."

Mr Keys added: "When I sat behind Blair at the inquiry, one mother asked him off-camera about the death toll. He just looked at us as cold as a fish and walked out. Now he's flaunting himself with this totally insensitive book."

Military Families Against the War's Andrew Burgin added: "To say he regrets the lives lost is completely meaningless.

"He is still living off their corpses after being given a retainer by JP Morgan, who have taken over the banking system in Iraq.

"He has to prove his regret and giving money to charity doesn't come close. He is giving a miniscule amount compared to the cost of war and rehabilitation of injured soldiers. It is laughable."

Mr Blair argues that reports from UN inspectors made it clear that Saddam was a continuing threat even if he had abandoned his weapons of mass destruction.

He admits: "None of this in any way dismisses the force of the criticism that we failed to foresee the nature of what would follow." But, appealing for "a fair hearing", he says: "I have often reflected as to whether I was wrong. I ask you to reflect whether I may have been right."

But the Stop the War Coalition responded: "Rather than having these memoirs promoted, Tony Blair should be being held to account for the terrible suffering he has inflicted."

179 The total number of British soldiers who lost their lives in Iraq - with a further 315 wounded, most of them seriously.

4,420 ..American soldiers have died in the conflict, with another 31,926 wounded.

100,000 ..Iraqi civilians have been killed in the war - at a conservative estimate.

$900billion The amount of US taxpayers' cash which has been spent on the war to date.

BLAIR ON TUITION FEES

Tony Blair reveals he nearly resigned over his party's refusal to accept university tuition fees.

He says of all the reforms he tried to introduce, the question of student funding was the most "fiercely" contested and "split" the government.

Mr Blair says there were the "usual fraught exchanges with Gordon and the Treasury".

He continues: "The whole debate provided a fascinating glimpse into the difficulties of making changes in the modern world, and almost led to my resignation. It aroused unbelievably tenacious dissent."

The ex-PM admits fees "cost us several seats at the 2005 elec-tion", concluding: "It split the government; but by the time the reforms were introduced in late 2005, they caused very little stir."

BLAIR ON REFORMS

The book contains a staunch defence of Mr Blair's controversial reforms of health, welfare and education which opened the door to the private sector. He even declares that his only regret is allowing them to be watered down.

He writes: "Each reform was painfully iterated and reiterated. Each was amended and adjusted; and occasionally - and each time to my chagrin - watered down. But together they added up to a substantial corpus of change and set the system in new direction."

Blair also lifts the lid on how Gordon Brown dragged his feet over his welfare and pensions reforms. "I kept saying to Gordon, quite apart from the fact that both sets of proposals are manifestly right in themselves, if we don't do them, a future Tory government will, but in a Tory way."

BLAIR ON GORDON

Mr Blair considered sacking Gordon Brown because of the "relentless" campaign he waged to take over as Prime Minister.

He admits that he even ran through possible replacements for his "maddening" Chancellor but feared the dramatic move would split his Government and force him from office.

The ex-PM claims he would still have axed former friend and ally Mr Brown if it was in Britain's inter-ests but none of the Blairite ministers were up to the job.

He writes: "My failure to do so was not a lack of courage. Nor was it simply about managing a complex situation.

"It was because I believed, despite it all, despite my own feelings at times, that he was the best Chancellor for the country."

He continues: "Ultimately, though the relentless personal pressure from Gordon was wearing, it troubled me far less than they (or perhaps he) ever realised. And it was in many ways a far less toxic and deadly opposition than might have been the case."

And he later accuses Mr Brown of costing the party power in the last election by turning his back on the election-winning "New Labour" formula.

He admits he often "stretched the truth past breaking point" to try to set up a deal between the two sides. The ex-PM, now a Middle East envoy, explains: "In the Middle East there is an agreement as to the eventual outcome: a two-state solution. In Northern Ireland, there is an irreconcilable argument."

He also reveals that at one point the talks almost broke down because the Republicans and the Unionists could not agree on the shape of the table around which they would hold negotiations.